Call Your Senator and Urge Them to Vote Yes For the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act and No for the Paul and Lee Amendments

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For complete lists of all Members of Congress and whether or not they have sponsored the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, click the button for the chamber you wish to view below.

The bill has passed the House with an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 402 to 12.

Now it needs to pass the Senate and be sent to the President.

The
vote will be Tuesday, July 23rd.

Call your Senator and urge them to vote No on the Paul and Lee Amendments and Yes on Final Passage.

Find other Members of Congress

For complete lists of all Members of Congress so you can call them and whether they are cosponsors of the permanent funding and authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, click the button for the chamber you wish to view above.

Find out if your Member of Congress has joined the over 400 bipartisan Members of Congress who have co-sponsored the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund(S. 546 / H.R. 1327).

Not sure who your representatives are? Type in your home address above, and we will automatically match you with your representative and both of your senators. Or, you can click on the buttons above to browse complete lists of all members of Congress and see who a co-sponsor of the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.

Why your Senator should vote yes on the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act (S. 546/H.R. 1327).

The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund has announced that because of the lack of funding, injured and ill 9/11 responders and survivors will face cuts in compensation for their injuries of 50% and 70%. This will have a devastating impact of those who are still suffering the impact of the toxins at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and the Shanksville crash site and have been waiting for the help they need and deserve.

Not only will it not have the funds needed to fully pay claims, but the VCF is scheduled to close in December of 2020. That means if you were a 9/11 responder and you become sick with cancer in January of 2021, you will have nowhere to turn.

We cannot let that happen.

In 2010, after years of delays and facing increasing pressure from 9/11 responders and survivors walking the halls of Congress, Washington finally acted and authorized medical treatment and monitoring as well as economic compensation to those injured at Ground Zero, the Pentagon, and the Shanksville crash site for five years.

In 2015, again under pressure from injured and ill 9/11 responders and survivors with overwhelming bipartisan support, Congress passed a new law that made the World Trade Center Health Program permanent so that injured responders and survivors can get the health care that they need. This law also extended the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund for another 5 years.

This at a time when the number of people coming forward with illnesses and cancers related to their exposure to toxins at Ground Zero grows every day. When nearly every other day, another 9/11 responder or survivor dies from a 9/11 related cancer.

These are the facts today:

The more than 49,000 people who are in the World Trade Center Health Program are suffering from at least one certified 9/11 condition caused by toxins at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and the Shanksville crash site, while a large percentage have multiple conditions.

Chronic diseases like asthma, obstructive pulmonary disease, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and cancer continue to plague those who were exposed to the many toxins and carcinogens on 9/11 and in the weeks and months thereafter.

Over 10,000 of those enrolled in the Health Program have been certified with a 9/11 related cancer, with more being diagnosed every day. Thousands more who have been diagnosed with cancer are only now joining the health program, so these numbers will increase dramatically.

9/11 responders and survivors in the Health Program reside in all 50 states and in 433 out of 435 Congressional districts.

It has taken years of effort to get a handle on the size and scope of the health crisis facing so many. The statistics and information we have now were not available in 2010 when the legislation was first passed, or in 2015 during the reauthorization.

Now that these facts have become known, and we have a better understanding of the number of people that are sick and dying from their 9/11 exposures, it is up to Congress to act.

Congress must provide the funds needed by the VCF so that these devasting cuts can be reversed- cuts that are impacting the lives of thousands of injured and still suffering, as well as the families of those that have died.

Remember: it was the Federal government that said the air was safe to breathe.

It was also the Federal government that refused for years to take responsibility, to do the research and respond to the health crisis that is facing so many.

Given the information we now have on the scope of the health crisis and the funding shortfall the VCF faces, it is our hope that Congress will in fact remember 9/11 by providing the needed funds and authorizing a permanent Victim Compensation Fund by passing S. 546/HR. 1327.

Here’s how the tool works so that you can call your member of Congress and urge them to join in this effort

Type in your address above and we will look up your Members of Congress and tell you if they:

Are cosponsors of the Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. (S. 546/ H.R. 1372).

If they are in the House how they voted on HR. 1327.

If they were in Congress in 2010, how they voted on the original Zadroga Act that year.

The number of 9/11 responders and survivors they represent who participate in the WTC Health Program.

The number of injured 9/11 responders and survivors they represent who have filed to be eligible for the Victim Compensation Fund.

Most importantly, if they are not co-sponsors of the legislation to fully fund and make permanent the VCF (HR. 1327/ S. 546), we will tell you what they have said about 9/11 in the past so you can demand they live up to their own words.

We will also give you the phone number to their office in Washington, so you can call and thank them if they cosponsored the bill or let them know that you need them to help 9/11 responders and survivors if they have not.

Footnotes

(1) Footnote on cosponsoring of HR 1327 and S. 546 in 2019 by Members of Congress. Whether a Member of Congress is a cosponsor of the legislation comes from the Library of Congress:

(3) Footnote for U.S. House of Representatives Voting Record from 2010.

In the House of Representatives there were three floor votes in 2010 taken by the full House. The Table above reflects the total of the three votes. If a member voted for the legislation either the second or the third time they are marked as voting “Yes”, if they voted no and opposed the legislation they are marked as “No”. If they were not in Congress that year they are marked as “Not in Congress”.

The first attempt at House Passage (Roll #491) on July 29, 2010, was an attempt to achieve passage using an expedited procedure called “Suspension of the Rules” that requires an affirmative two-thirds vote for passage and is used by the House to vote on non-controversial legislation. While the vote was 255-159 in favor, the bill failed to get the required two-thirds affirmative vote of those present and was not passed.

The second attempt at House passage was successful. Using regular House procedures, on September 29, 2010 the legislation was brought to the full House, was passed and sent to the Senate with an overwhelming majority vote of 268-160 (Roll #550).

The final vote in the House of Representatives was on December 22, 2010. This vote was on final passage of the legislation and agreeing to changes made by the U.S. Senate. It was, in fact, the last bill to pass the Congress that year. The House vote of 206-60 (Roll #664) sent the bill to President Barack Obama for his signature.

(4) Footnote for U.S. Senate Voting Record from 2010.

In the U.S. Senate there was only one roll call vote on the legislation and that was on December 9, 2010. The vote was on procedural motion to break a filibuster by Senators Coburn and Enzi against the bill and to invoke “cloture” to allow the bill to be brought up for debate. The vote was 57-42 (Roll #269), just short of the required 60 votes to break the filibuster and allow the legislation to be brought up for debate on the Senate floor.

After that vote, Senators Mark Kirk, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski publicly declared that if legislation were brought up again they would vote for cloture and support the bill. Because of the public statements by Senators Kirk , Collins, and Murkowski, Senators Coburn and Enzi negotiated a compromise that was subsequently approved by the Senate on December 22, 2010. This vote was conducted through a procedure called “Unanimous Consent” where there is no roll call vote but the legislation is passed when no Senator objects.

Senators are shown as having voted yes, no, or not in Congress during the first vote (Roll #269).

With that action, as mentioned above, the legislation was sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives where it was voted on, passed again, and sent to President Obama, who signed it into law on January 2, 2011.

(5) Footnote on statistics

Some of the statistics presented in the tool are in the form of a range — for example, “1 to 9.” This is because the data at low levels is purposefully “masked” by either the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund or the World Trade Center Health Program to prevent the possible identification of specific participants.